Germans eye the UK market
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ormany holds Europe's gest exhibition of vehicles d machinery for the nstruction industry; many the manufacturers are at esent unknown in Britain, t this may soon change, 3orts our special rrespondent.
E GERMAN BAUMA construction lustry show rightly claims to be t largest of its kind in Europe. th 24 exhibition halls and giant en air site covered in a forest of Fier cranes and other massive uipment, the Bauma show, with we than 1,200 exhibitors, filled the ge Munich show ground to Dacity.
The recent changes to vehicle 3ss vehicle weight taxation and 9 introduction of 38-tonne gcw s made the UK market attractive German trailer and body tnufacturers. Many I spoke to we in the early stages of restigating the possibilities of
iht: Ackerrnann-Fruehauf had a w reduced weight tipper semitiler. With 6mm (0.24m) sides and nn (0.31m) thick floor, the 20cum icuyd) alloy body is suitable, says K, for heavy-duty applications ;Iuding bitumen at up to 200°C 30°F). Unladen weight, as shown
5,670kg, with parabolic springs ,d an alloy chassis, from Benalu, .w to the Fruehauf group, the laden weight could be as low as 580kg.
exporting to this country.
Meiller, the largest tipper body manufacturer in Germany, will be exhibiting at the Tipcon, Harrogate, this year for the first time ever. At Munich the company has a new version of its skip-loading gear, the AK 10 081.
By including an additional pair of hydraulic rams in the side arms, the equipment can now be used to place skips, or demountable bodies very accurately. These extra rams also give the body the ability to handle much longer bodies. Initial production is being concentrated on the 10-tonne-lift version; 12 and 16tonne models will follow later. To give even greater reach to the Meiller truck-mounted crane range, the company has produced an additional, revised version. This gives up to eight metres reach, yet still allows for folding behind the cab clear of the vehicle's load bed. This facility of the original crane range is retained by allowing the extra boon section to "pass" the lower section of boom and fold alongside it.
Several manufacturers had taken positive steps to reduce unladen weight. Ackermann-Fruehauf showed a premium specification 7.2m (23ft 7in)-long tri-axleri tipper semi-trailer which weighed a very competitive 5.67 tonnes complete with a 20 cum (26 cu yd) capacity body. The body has an eight millimetre thick floor and relatively thick 6 mm (0.24m) sides.
A.K claims that the new trailer's weight can be further reduced by specifying the optional parabolic springing giving an extra saving of 90kg (2001b). If further weight saving
Left: Liebherr, like many other Continental truck mixer manufacturers, uses shaft-drive from the vehicle's camshaft to power the mixer. This is a lighter, simpler means of providing auxiliary power.
Below left: Eight-wheeler chassis are gaining ground in Germany, though some such as this tveco 26025 chassis started life as a 6x4. The extra 10-tonne-capacity, air-sprung, axle has been added behind the original bogie. This allows the vehicle to carry a 9cu m (12cu yd) Liebherr HTM 5034A mixer unit instead of a 6cum (8cu yd) machine as it would with in three-axle configuration.
Below: A low-loader specialist, Scheuerle, was showing a special three-axle semi-trailer for excavators and other heavy equipment. it was a hydraulically detachable gooseneck and hydraulic axle compensation. Payloads of up to 50 tonnes can be carried at speeds up to 60km/h (38mph) Scheuerle claims. is demanded the light, high-tensile, high-chrome-steel chassis can be replaced with an all-alloy unit.
Ackermann-Fruehauf can now offer this option, as alloy trailer maker, Benalu is, since October 1982, part of the Freuhauf France organisation.
Tare weight is then reduced by a further 900kg, says A-K, making a very low unladen weight of 4,680kg possible. The company does not recommend using the alloy chassis frame where there is heavy off-road operation involved.
Marrel is another company which has carried out weight saving on its equipment. Its skip-loaders are now between 500 to 800kg (10 to 16cwt) lighter thanks to the use of higtensile steels.
The company also was showing its new MA 5.35 Ampliroll body for vehicles in the TransitNW LT weight ranges. Just in production, this unit is similar to the larger, well known, Marrel ground loading demountable body or skip system. ft is suitable for chassis grossing up to 5 tonnes and was shown on a VW LT5OD chassis. Body capacities of up to 16cum (21cu yd) can be handled by the unit.
The equipment weighs 480g, giving a reasonable payload capacity. The unit has a maximum lifting capacity of 2.6 tonnes and should be available later in the UK.
At the other end of the weight range Marrel had a new huge sidetipping semi-trailer for use in the Middle East or on internal transport. Coupled to a 6X4 Mercedes 2636 unit the outfit, in the German Readyrnix company's livery, looked extremely impressive, as only a 105tonne-gcw outfit can.
Payload capacity is 80 tonnes in the two 24cu m (31cu yd) bodies mounted on the massive tri-axle semi-trailer chassis. Only one way side tipping is provided, the body sides being swung by arms pivoting around points centrally mounted on the top centre of front and rear bulkheads.
Of the many engine manufacturers present Cummins was showing two all-new product ranges, the B-Series and the 10-litre. Both were making their European debut for construction and industrial applications.